Effects of exercise on systemic inflammatory, coagulatory, and cardiac autonomic parameters in an inhalational exposure study.

BACKGROUND

Intermittent moderate-intensity exercise is used in human inhalational exposure studies to increase the effective dose of air pollutants.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the inflammatory, coagulatory, and autonomic effects of intermittent moderate-intensity exercise.

METHODS

We measured hemodynamic, electrocardiographic, inflammatory, and coagulatory parameters in peripheral blood of 25 healthy subjects across an exercise protocol that included running on a treadmill or pedaling a cycle ergometer for 30 minutes every hour over 4 hours in a climate-controlled chamber with a target ventilation of 20 L/min/m2 body surface area.

RESULTS

Intermittent moderate-intensity exercise induced a systemic proinflammatory response characterized by increases in leukocyte counts, C-reactive protein, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and interleukin-6, but did not change coagulation tendency or heart rate variability.

CONCLUSION

Interpretation of pollutant-induced inflammatory responses in inhalational exposure studies should account for signals and noises caused by exercise, especially when the effect size is small.